Chapter 7
Lola
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Oh, by the fucking stars.
The woods were silent as my grip tightened on the small knife, pressing it a little harder against Dimitri’s throat, but my heartbeat was still deafening in my ears.
The slight pressure of his fingers on my wrist made my mind go blank, and I could have fainted the moment my eyes landed on his deep blue ones.
“Are you escaping?” Dimitri asked, the crease between his brows deepening, not the slightest bit worried about the dull blade touching his skin. “Did he do something to you?”
The rage in his tone was barely contained but the pressure of his hand eased when I shook my head.
Safe to say my brother’s plan was not going well.
The damn Dragons have been here for three days, and so far, their leader didn’t seem ready to give up his pursuit, no matter how rude I was to him or his men.
No matter how many times I snapped at him, or how many sneaky insults I threw his way.
I wasn’t sure Aghen had the opportunity to talk to him about how awful I was yet, but I had little hope it’d worked.
I came here with the foolish thought that if I was away and alone for the whole day, my mind would become clear enough that I could find new ways to be a huge pain in his ass. Give him more reasons to choose the other Maiden and leave me the fuck alone.
“Anastasia,” Dimitri said. “Where are you going?”
He eyed the small pack I carried on my shoulders, the dress and shoes I was wearing, clearly not fit for a long journey.
“I—I’m just taking a stroll, that’s all.”
When the short lapse in judgment made me pack a bag in case I found the courage to escape, I forgot about that newly found mate of mine. But after all, who would want to live their life on the run? Nothing, not even a Mate link, was worth this nightmare.
“A stroll.” In a quick motion, he managed to make me drop the knife before his free hand pulled my bag off my shoulder to peer inside.
“Give it back!”
“With spare clothes and food. How far are you planning to stroll?”
I pulled on my arm, casting wary glances around to make sure we were still alone. We were far enough from the village that I knew no one would be here unless they had something to do in the woods, but hunters preferred the other side, where more animals wandered.
Dimitri didn’t let go.
“What’s going on, Anastasia?” he asked, anger leaving room for confusion. “Why are you running away?”
“I—I’m not running away. I can’t run away, they’d find me in a heartbeat.”
“Why the bag and supplies then?”
“Because for a second I was brave enough to think I could,” I hissed.
His head snapped to the side, eyes squinted. The next moment, he pulled me deeper into the forest, only stopping to shove my back against a large tree, pressing the front of his body into mine.
“What are you—”
“Shh,” he said, carefully placing his palm over my lips, eyes looking toward where we previously stood. “Someone’s coming.”
Shit. Did they follow me? I left barely thirty minutes ago, and I wasn’t that slow, there was no way they’d know I was out already. It—
“I understand your concerns,” the familiar voice of my father said, and my eyes widened. I turned my head slightly, Dimitri easing his hold to allow the motion.
What I saw made my blood run cold.
Shit.
“They’re not really concerns,” Amyntas said, his accent thick, but mastery of our language impressive. “I just want to make sure we’re on the same page here.”
“And we are,” my father answered calmly. “Nefertari really wants this to happen. Anastasia might seem a bit rough on the edges, but she’ll make a wonderful wife. And she’ll give you a powerful heir, I know it.”
“Was offering your daughter your wife’s choice, then?”
They stopped at the clearing where Dimitri caught me and looked at each other. My breath was stuck in my throat, afraid his Dragon senses would pick up my trace if I breathed too loud. My father nodded.
“It was, yes. Nefertari had this in mind since our children were born, I believe. Twins are a rare blessing, after all.”
Amyntas gave a non-committal hum before he looked around, eyes narrowed. Fuck, I was going to faint from lack of oxygen soon.
“I’ve heard she’ll have more chances of having twins herself,” my father added, holding his hands behind his back. “That’s what the Witches predicted.”
Amyntas gave my father a condescending look. “Shamans—Witches aren’t trustworthy anymore, I thought you knew this.”
“They’re uncorrupted,” my father responded with a shake of the head. “We’re keeping a close watch on them to make sure they stay under the Hellriser’s radar. We killed a corrupted coven on the mainland less than a month ago.”
Dimitri’s gaze met mine, searching. Did he even understand what they were saying?
A lot of humans knew about Astrals, but some were still clueless about their influence, especially if they lived far from where the different Astral species lived.
Nothing on his face showed if he did or did not know.
His blue eyes were curious. Searching. Assessing.
Amyntas sighed. “You need to understand that I’m nothing like my father was.” He paused, staring my father down. “But if I’m placing my trust in your family—in your daughter, and you screw me over, I won’t take it kindly.”
“As you should,” my father simply said, like this Dragon ass didn’t just threaten us all. “After all, once you choose between your two Maiden, it marks your soul.”
My father’s chuckle was dry and forced.
Amyntas looked toward us once again and Dimitri swiftly pressed me deeper against the bark of the tree, hiding us from their sight.
My heart plummeted in my chest. I could feel his eyes looking straight at us, like he could see through the thick trunk.
But nothing happened, and after a short, breathless moment, their footsteps retreated back toward the village.
Dimitri’s fingers pinched my chin, forcing my eyes up.
“What the Hell is a Maiden?”
“I don’t like this.”
His sigh echoed in the forest’s silence.
“Do you think I do?” I stretched my back to relieve the ache that had settled after sitting on the boulder for what seemed to have been a whole hour. “I can’t do that. I’m—I don’t want to be forced into this marriage.”
“Then leave with me,” he said, like it was really an option. Like we wouldn’t be hunted down by both my family and the Dragon clan if we tried.
His hand landed on mine, the touch soft. Slow. Deliberate. I needed to pull mine away. I couldn’t afford Amyntas to smell or sense Dimitri’s existence. Couldn’t afford to cause the death of the mate I was gifted with but couldn’t accept.
But I couldn’t bring myself to. It was selfish, really. Risking his life like this for just a small touch.
“I can’t,” I said, still not pulling my hand back. “Astrals can be ruthless, and I wouldn’t subject you to—”
“You’re not subjecting me to anything,” he whispered, scooting closer, brushing his bicep to my shoulder. “I can’t leave this place without you anyway.”
“Of course you can.” And yet the idea of him leaving me behind twisted my inside. But I couldn’t be selfish. Not for this. “It would be the smart choice. I can’t leave with you without risking your life, and if you stay, you’ll only have a front row spot to my misery and—”
“Then leave with me,” he repeated, inching closer. “My life will be fine.” His nose brushed mine in a soft caress, fingers tightening around mine. “Our life will be fine. No forced heir to carry, no imposed marriage, no—”
“I can defend myself, Dimitri.”
His name on my lips made him release a shuddering breath, the warm air hitting my parted lips as his forehead connected with mine in a comforting touch.
“I—you need to let me go.”
It was the wrong thing to say. The muscles of his shoulders tensed, his jaw clenched. His free hand reached the back of my head, fingers sliding between strands of hair.
“You think I can?” Dimitri asked, a desperate edge to his voice. “My soul belongs to yours. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t leave you behind.”
“You don’t even know me.”
His chuckle was a little dry but it warmed my whole body nonetheless. “I know you’re unhappy. I know you’re sad, angry, and lonely. I know you want more from your life than being married off to the fucking Dragons. I know you crave love, touch, freedom…”
By the stars, that man made my skin feel too tight for my burning soul. My heart missed a few beats as his lips grazed mine without ever touching them fully. If he came just a little closer, my back would meet the grass.
Panic rose in my chest. He was too close. There was no way Amyntas wouldn’t scent Dimitri all over me.
My hand grabbed the second knife attached to my belt and I gasped as I brought it to his throat once again. The blue of his eyes glinted in surprise, a mischievous smile stretching the corner of his lips.
“Oh, so we’re back to threatening my delicate skin with dull blades, are we.” I frowned. “Oh, come on dusha moya. You might believe that you can defend yourself, but if you believe your poor fighting skills paired with a dull pruning knife will do any real damage to me, we have work to do.”
His amused response to my scoff made my blood boil. “I know how to fight.”
“Sure. I’ve seen you hit and try to slice that straw training dummy, and you were utterly terrifying. I wonder how it remained standing? I know in its place, I would have been laughing on the floor.”
Well, ouch. I thought I was getting better by the day, even though my secret self training sessions were rare.
“What do you even know about—”
I was cut short by his deep, booming laugh. Again, ouch. It was not a good day for my pride. “You’ve seen me fight and kill a Hellhound. How are there still any doubts in that mind of yours that I’m perfectly able to judge your fighting skill and ability to defend yourself?”
My jaw dropped, but I didn’t remove the apparently useless knife from his throat.
However, it took Dimitri half a second to send it scattering away and finally make my back connect with the ground.
“But sure, let’s pretend for one second that you can fight your way out of this situation. Any other knife hidden on that leather belt of yours? And by knife, I mean something sharper than one designed to cut mushrooms off the ground.”
Blood rushed to my cheeks, probably coloring them a bright, embarrassing red. Smug asshole.
“Or any move you might know to push me away?” he taunted, settling between my legs, sending a strange and warm feeling in my lower stomach. “Go ahead. Defend yourself. I won’t even fight back.”
Both his hands were now supporting his weight next to my head, caging me in. My attempts to push at his chest were futile and no matter how hard I tried to move under him, he wasn’t budging an inch.
Well fuck.
“Anytime, Anastasia,” he crooned.
“I’m trying.”
“Are you? Huh.”
I pinched his bicep in outrage—also because I wasn’t above playing dirty—and he had the audacity to laugh.
Dimitri brought his lips to my ears and murmured, “Close your legs around my waist, dusha moya.”
I swat at his chest and hissed, “Are you insane? Let me go!”
“I thought you wanted to be able to defend yourself. Do as you’re told.”
“Don’t tell me what to do,” I snapped.
“I’m teaching you. There are many forms of attacks, and if someone ever tries to force themselves on you, I want you to be able to free yourself.”
“Force themselves on—” I froze at his darkening eyes.
“Over my dead fucking body I’m letting Dragons or anyone use or disrespect you in any way,” he growled in my ear, sending goosebumps along my arms.
My heart felt too big for my constricting chest.
“And dead is what you might end up to be if you keep interfering,” I said softly. Not as a threat, but a warning. A warning of what Amyntas or my family might do to him if he got in their way.
His eyes softened as one of his hands landed on my cheek to cup my face, his thumb tracing slow lines under my eyes.
“Your legs, Anastasia. Close them around my hips.”
My throat bobbed but I gave him a shallow nod, lifting my knees to circle his waist, ignoring the rush of heat as the shift of position made the bulge in his trousers press harder against my core.
‘Good,” he rasped. “Good. If someone pins you in this position, they’ll have a specific objective in mind. Wait until they’re distracted. Until they think you’re compliant. If your hands are free, do everything you can to attack their face.”
I nodded and he softly grabbed my wrists, pinning them to the floor next to my head. My heart raced.
“If they’re not, you’ll need to use your legs.
Lift them higher, try to reach right under my arms—yes, perfect.
Tighten your hold and lift your hips at the same time.
” I did, and the shift of position pushed him back.
“Now you have to slide your legs higher until you can push me away with your feet. Hit in the chest, in the face, everywhere you can. The attacker will be forced to let go of your hand to try and stop you.”
I did as he told, not hitting too hard, but managing to push him away by pressing my feet to his collarbones. He fell backward, landing on his ass just a few feet away. Taking the opportunity to sit back up, I stared at him with parted lips.
“And then what?”
He chuckled. “Then, you either run away and flee, or keep fighting until he’s no longer a threat.”
Would I ever be able to? And even if I ran, what’s to say my attacker wouldn’t catch up to me?
“You said my fighting skills sucked,” I groaned.
“They do.” Great. “But I can teach you more. I can teach you to spar, or use a bow. Hand to hand combat. Defensive and offensive moves.”
“I’m not allowed to,” I confessed in a low voice.
“I know. Why else would you try to train in secret? But why aren’t you allowed? I’ve seen women in your father’s army. Some who appear to be your sisters too.”
I groaned, looking away. The grass and sparse flowers suddenly seemed really interesting.
“Because I’m an anomaly. I’m the heir’s twin sister. Twins are rare, and never heard of in a leader's family. I’m not allowed to put my life in danger. I’m supposed to just stand still and look pretty, and apparently, scars aren’t attractive enough and they would decrease my value in a marriage.”
He crawled closer, sitting on his haunches once he reached me. The blue of his gaze was hypnotizing as he stared at me, searching my eyes.
“I’ll train you in secret, then.”
“What if I—get a scar or something?”
He grinned, catching both my hands in his. “I’m not aiming to hurt you. But if it happens, scars don’t repulse me. And who knows, maybe the stupid Dragon will back off then.”